(BRK.A), (BRK.B)
What was Warren Buffett’s greatest insurance investment? Was it the purchase of GEICO? How about National Indemnity?
According to Buffett, it was none of those. It was the hiring of Ajit Jain.
In an interview with Best’s Review, Warren Buffett says he made one of his best investments when he chose Ajit Jain to run his reinsurance business nearly 30 years ago. Jain, who is considered one of the front-runners to succeed Buffett as the head of Berkshire Hathaway, is one of the insurance leaders profiled in the July issue.
Jain was hired by Buffett in 1986, and at the time he was 35-years-old and had little experience in the reinsurance business.
Today, Jain is one of Buffett’s most trusted managers, having built Berkshire Hathaway Reinsurance Group into a reinsurance insurance powerhouse with $44 billion in float.
In April, he was given additional duties overseeing Gen Re after CEO Tad Montross retired.
Sounds like a good investment indeed.
© 2016 David Mazor
Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.